May 22, 2022
St. John’s United Church of Christ, Union, Illinois
Acts 16:9-15; John 14:23-29[1]
When a word in
a book is really important, there are ways to make readers pay attention. You
can write it in all capital letters. You can underline it. Some people use
highlighters to make important words stand out. Or you can repeat the word; use
the same word twice to show how important it is.
In Deuteronomy
16:20, the same word is used two times in the same sentence to show how
important it is. “Justice, and only justice, you shall pursue.”[2]
Justice is one
of the most important things to God, which is why the word is used two times in
this sentence. The word “justice” is used 129 times in the Bible. Why does justice
matter so much to God? Why should it matter to us? Justice means making things
fair – especially for people who are having the hardest time – because they are
very young or very poor or others don’t respect or care about them. But God
loves even the very young, or very poor, and loves even those whom others
disrespect or treat with indifference or hatred. Justice is so important to God
that, in this single verse, God’s people are told twice to work hard for
justice.
But if we are
to pursue justice for God’s people all around the world, we have to start
someplace. We have to start where we are, in our homes, in our relationships,
and in our own hearts.
Our homes are
where we and our families live. Home is more than the physical space where we
live. A house is just a building, but a home implies the relationships between
the people living together. Home is where we grow and learn the most important
life lessons of unconditional love, respect for one another, taking care of one
another and of the things around us, and how to be fair.
Home is where
children become adults, citizens of the community. Home is where faith is
kindled, explored, and encouraged. Faith is born as we pray together before a
meal, or at bedtime, and as parents answer the deep questions from children of
life and death and what it all means. Home is where two people who love each
other will share a meal every day, sometimes for more than fifty years.
The home can be
a sacred place. When we consider something blessed, worthy of spiritual respect
or devotion, or as a place where God can be found, we say that it is sacred.
Can God be found in our homes? In Revelation, the story of the New Jerusalem tells
us that “The home of God is among mortals.”[3]
Jesus told the disciples, “Those who love me will keep my word, and my Father
will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.”[4]
God is at home in our homes, in our relationships, and in our hearts.
It is important
then, if God is living with us in our homes, that we make God feel welcome. How
should we welcome God into our homes? This may be easier than we think. There
was a time, long ago, when God didn’t have a home. When the Hebrews, the Jews,
first escaped from slavery in
God spoke with
King David, and his son, King Solomon, about having a house built to replace
the tent. This house was called the
But we don’t
need to do all of that building and decorating in order to welcome God into our
homes. We only need to love Jesus and to make our homes a place that is worthy
of blessing. If we want God to be at home with us, then we only need to show
love and justice to one another.
A big part of
showing love and justice is recognizing that through Christ we are members of
God’s family. God’s family includes children of every race and every song.
God’s family includes people who are refugees, hungry, poor, and oppressed. God’s
family includes you, and me, and everyone we know. Some of us have a better and
easier life than others. Some of us struggle every day to survive. And that is
not fair, that is not just.
It is not fair
that there are over 72 million children in this country living in poverty,[5]
and millions without health care, without a spot in Head Start or child care, and
countless children who go to bed hungry. But God knows each of their names,
their faces, their stories. This is but one example of injustice in our country
and in our world. And God calls us to go in pursuit of justice on their behalf.
“Justice, only justice, shall you pursue.”
If we are to
pursue justice, then we must begin where we are. We must begin with ourselves,
our neighbors, our families, and our children, and show them love and justice.
We must recognize that every person is a unique and sacred child of God. And we
must learn and teach our children to recognize the sacredness of others.
Perhaps in doing so, we will spark the desire for justice in their hearts, and
in ours.
I want to end
with these words, written by Spanish cellist and composer Pablo Casals. I think
they sum up what is vital for us to do on behalf of children everywhere.
Each second we live is a new and unique
moment of the universe, a moment that will never be again. And what do we teach
our children? We teach them that two and two make four, and that
God, help us to
love you. Help us to keep the word of Jesus and learn to love. Make your home
in us. Amen.
[1] The
scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard
Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of
the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
[2] Deuteronomy
16:20.
[3]
Revelation 21:3.
[4]
John 14:23.
[6]
Pablo Casals, Joys and Sorrows (New York:
Simon and Schuster, 1974).
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